Murmur and Tumult. Masterpieces of Nabis from the Musee d’Orsay

During the late 19th century, a number of young avant-garde artists in Paris — including Paul Serusier, Pierre Bonnard, Edouard Vuillard, Maurice Denis and Felix Vallotton — established the art group Les Nabis, which took its name from the Hebrew and Arabic word “prophet.”

Inspired by the post-impressionist Paul Gauguin, Les Nabis rejected representational painting trends of the time and actively pursued new artistic expressions. Though the artists often chose everyday subjects, their painting styles involved elements of symbolism, impressionism and design, giving them a less realistic and often flat appearance. These first steps in non-representational art helped pave the way for later artistic movements of the 20th century.

This exhibition features around 70 works — roughly 60 oil paintings and 10 sketches — from the Les Nabis collection of the Musee d’Orsay in Paris. (YUKARI TANAKA)